What you should know

You should start planning your post- operative recovery before you have your spinal surgery. The fitter you are before surgery the better for your recovery. Discuss with your surgeon and the hospital team matters like going up and down stairs, return to driving and return to work and exercise.

The specifics of what you should know about to speed your post- operative recovery depend very much on the condition you have and the operation you have. Surgeons vary a lot in their views about what you should and shouldn’t do, so make sure you ask.

These are some general guidance related to the most common spinal operations.

Early movement is good for you. It stops you getting too stiff and it reduces the risk of complications such as blood clots in the legs. After the operation you will be quite sore and so good pain control as directed by your health professionals will help you to move around more easily.

Most operations for nerve compression pain do not de-stabilise the spine and so there is no reason to worry about harming yourself by moving around and getting back to normal. In common operations such as a discectomy or decompression you may only be in hospital for a short time, such as overnight or a day or two. Some spinal units will do nerve decompression surgery as a day case.

Generally the bigger and more complex the surgery the longer your hospital stay will be. You need to discuss this with your surgical team, they are there to help you get better quicker.

A return to driving is generally safe once you are walking well and confident in movement. That will vary from patient to patient and also depends on the surgery. A fit younger patient having a simple discectomy operation might well be safe to return to driving and work, depending on the job, by two weeks. An older patient having a more extensive procedure will take longer, more often between 6 weeks and 12 weeks.

If nerve pain was present before the operation it may sometimes recover rapidly. In some patients it may take longer to improve. Generally it is clear if surgery has helped by about 6 weeks. Nerve pain doesn’t always completely recover. Symptoms of numbness may take many months to improve and sometimes will persist.

Physiotherapy is often not needed for everyone. Usually before hospital discharge the health care team will prepare you for safe discharge home. This may involve assessments of walking, going up and down stairs, and the use of walking aids and toileting aids if needed.

What to look out for

Complications after hospital discharge are fortunately infrequent but they do occur.

Increasing wound pain, redness of the wound and a temperature might indicate an infection and you should seek medical advice and reassurance at an early stage.

If you have a new or very different nerve pain after surgery you should seek medical reassurance.

A new onset of difficulty in passing urine, particularly if associated with numbness around the anus or back passage should be medically assessed with some urgency.

If you develop pain or swelling in your calf or leg this could be a sign of a blood clot and may require treatment. You should seek medical advice.